Looking at Polaris's upright body, Syrus's eyes grew somewhat moist.
Ever since hearing that Misawa and Zane had disappeared, Syrus hadn't slept a good night.
Because he felt fear and bewilderment.
This was something Hikaru, Jaden Yuki, and even more Duel Academy students would never experience. A kind of bewilderment that belonged uniquely to Syrus, belonging to the little brother.
In the past half year, Syrus had traveled with Jaden in the Boundary dimension, battled mad spirits, battled sinister Dark World, battled high-level star duelists, battled outstanding students from different academy branches, dueled Darkness spirits, and even faced Yubel together with Hassleberry.
In terms of experience, the difficulties Syrus had faced were absolutely no less than Zane. His growth over this past year or so was also plainly visible. Even Hikaru, when he saw it, praised him greatly. He was also a good brother that Jaden sincerely acknowledged.
All of this came from his joining the Combination Club under Hikaru's suggestion.
Though the Combination Club under the Fusion Army was full of various chaos and pain, the experience of studying and living together with Combination Club classmates still left a deep impression on Syrus. After the Fusion Army launched a sneak attack on the Xyz Dimension, the Combination Club's fragmentation made Syrus grow rapidly.
When danger came, when everything grew distant, this nominal Combination Club representative became the genuine representative.
He watched over the Combination Club, waiting for Combination Club friends to return, becoming stronger, facing more difficulties. Precisely because of this, the Tyler Sisters acknowledged him, letting him remain a Combination Club member, never leaving the Combination Club to join Hikaru's Fusion Club.
Precisely because of his efforts and persistence, Dennis and other academy Combination Club members sincerely advanced and retreated with him. Precisely because of these things, he had, besides big brother and Hassleberry, a good friend in Dennis.
Though perhaps not as good as big brother, not as good as Hikaru, he was actually quite satisfied with his own performance. He also felt that this year he was growing faster than last year.
He wasn't wrong about this.
Syrus himself in the original work was also a typical growth-type character. Each year he was clearly stronger than the last. In the end, he could even create the Cyber End complete form that even Zane hadn't mastered.
Of course, due to various other factors, Syrus wasn't very popular with the audience. So this point actually wasn't acknowledged by many.
Syrus himself naturally didn't know these things. But Hikaru knew. So when he saw Syrus growing stronger and more willful, often helping Jaden, he certainly acknowledged Syrus greatly.
Setting aside other things, if his mentality and resilience were maxed out, late-game Syrus as a muscle was absolutely qualified to help Jaden.
Regardless, in Hikaru's view, his own world's Syrus had absolutely no problem. So he always supported Syrus in fulfilling his own convictions.
Furthermore, the leftover issues of the Fusion Army needed someone to specifically handle sooner or later. If Syrus could truly bear this work, it would definitely save Hikaru countless energy.
But actually.
Syrus realized he wasn't, at least not as firm as others saw.
This was also something he realized only after learning Zane had disappeared.
Though he felt he was much stronger than before, though his performance at the Combination Club earned praise from many classmates, though big brother would now turn his back to him and ask for help, he actually still had a serious problem that no one else knew or realized.
He was the little brother.
This was a problem that many people, even Chazz Princeton who was also a little brother, couldn't realize.
Because even Chazz Princeton, though he was the youngest of the three brothers, on the duelist path, Chazz was the only one of the three brothers who'd stepped on that path.
But he was different.
Syrus had a mountain-like older brother.
Zane Truesdale, Kaiser Ryo, Hell Kaiser. Each title was quite famous in Duel Academy and the professional duelist circle. He was not only Duel Academy's top rising star of recent years, but also the first person in their dimension to master Xyz Summoning.
With such a powerful, such an outstanding older brother, Syrus as the little brother would naturally be compared.
When he first entered school, he feared this. But with his effort, with his dueling, with his duels with his big brother, he gained acknowledgment and understood his own thinking.
He didn't need to be the second Zane. He only needed to be the first Syrus.
So in the past year, he never again felt dread or fear because he was Zane's younger brother.
Because the duelist's path should be chosen by oneself. No one could influence him.
But all of this was shattered months ago.
When he heard his brother had disappeared, his confidence, his will, all collapsed under this one matter.
Not fear.
But bewilderment.
Big brother disappeared. What to do?
First, obviously, find his big brother.
But what if he couldn't find him!?
What should he do about his home?
What about Cyber Style?
What about the inheritance of Power Bond!?
These problems, these responsibilities, instantly pressed down on this second son who wasn't a failure, who was in fact growing more and more outstanding.
Following these came doubt and more worries.
When he began thinking about these problems, family, school of style, all sorts of things, problems he'd never considered before, all appeared.
Without big brother to shield him from wind and rain, he had to become the family's brand-new supporter. But his conviction, his goal, his future, were all in other things.
The one who could most understand his feelings was probably Alexis Rhodes, whose brother had also disappeared.
But even Alexis didn't need to bear some of the responsibilities he had to bear.
Precisely because of these layers upon layers of doubts, worries, concerns, he grew more and more bewildered.
Only today did he truly experience what big brother and Hikaru had once borne, some real, highest-level pressure that only people at the top could experience.
Similarly, precisely because of this, he insisted no matter what on dueling his brother himself, even if there was a more outstanding, more trustworthy senior like Atticus.
He took a deep breath.
This duel, he not only had to awaken his brother's memories like Hikaru had awakened Misawa.
He also had to figure out his own problems in this duel.
"Brother, let me be your opponent!" Syrus shouted at Polaris.
Oh.
Atticus Rhodes saw something unusual.
A bit interesting.
Atticus Rhodes was always good at taking care of juniors and very good at observing their mentality.
Whether it was Jaden or Hikaru's mentality or heart knots, he could precisely find them. When traveling through various dimensions, he could also detect the problems of those young spirits and offer help.
During this time, because Zane and Misawa had disappeared, he'd been running around nonstop.
While Hikaru was busy competing with Team 5D's, every person at Duel Academy had actually spent huge amounts of time every day in this dimension, thinking of every method they could to search for the two.
Those good at reasoning used reasoning. Those good at spirit power asked spirits. Someone like Atticus Rhodes, relying on superhuman looks, mixed into this dimension's official media, trying to see if he could latch onto any news.
Until some time ago, when everyone discovered Polaris's existence, and then paying attention, found that the City Hall team actually had Misawa. Only then did everyone free themselves from the headless-fly state of "don't know what to do, but busy anyway."
But even so, they were still searching for various methods to awaken the two.
Everyone was very busy, very chaotic. Only now, completely stopping, did Atticus Rhodes understand. Some people were simply anxious. Some had already encountered brand-new difficulties in life and on the dueling path.
He lightly pursed his lips and couldn't help smiling.
This was also a good thing.
Many people actually had the opportunity to walk onto a higher dueling stage. Just because of various problems, they couldn't cross themselves, couldn't cross dueling. So they could only remain stiffly in place.
In comparison, a junior like Syrus, who could step by step in life perceive his own weaknesses, perceive his own desires, and then perceive his own path, was really heartening.
In contrast, he sighed deeply.
Alexis.
Big brother was about to graduate soon.
No matter how much he dragged it out, he couldn't drag it any longer.
He worried deeply.
Compared to Syrus, Alexis had it too easy. And though she'd once participated in the GX tournament, she still hadn't awakened to anything.
Although he'd developed brand-new entertainment-dueling ideas under that Yusho Sakaki's teaching, it was far from enough.
He himself could accept entertainment dueling because he had a clear sense inside, knew when to do what, was good at dealing with various types of different people, and had his own work he wanted to do as a "spirit photographer."
But Alexis accepting entertainment dueling was purely because she didn't know what she should do, then encountered a brand-new dueling form, then tried it in bewilderment.
Sigh.
He sighed inwardly a couple more times, then forced himself to pat his face, not thinking about what Alexis was doing now, but focusing on the duel.
There were still six months. Before his graduation, there was still time. He could try his hardest to help Alexis. No problem!
The urgent matter was Zane!
"Oh, you're my opponent?" Polaris looked at Syrus. The short but not cowering figure reflected in his pupils made him develop a hint of interest without reason. "Good, looks like, not an opponent who'll waste my time."
Beside him, two luxuriously dressed people were also sizing up Syrus. They couldn't help showing a hint of snickering.
Though Syrus wore a purple uniform draped with a huge cape, he was really somewhat short. So this stylish-looking configuration actually appeared somewhat ridiculous.
Heh.
Really didn't know his place.
That duelist named Hikaru, or other Fusion team players coming to participate, could be understood. But this Syrus looked so weak in presence. How could he possibly be Polaris's opponent?!
Still calling him "brother."
Polaris was the nobles' last trump card, the Elder Council's last secret weapon!
Their nobility definitely could, relying on Polaris's existence, make a name at the WRGP and once again become the hidden ruler of this City!
A mere ordinary dimensional duelist, heh.
Polaris didn't waste more words. He took a Duel Disk, then pulled out a deck from his coat.
Syrus took a deep breath, extended his Duel Disk, facing Polaris, and placed the deck on at light speed.
"Duel!" ×2.
The voices were deafening.
The two nobles instinctively covered their ears.
Hikaru blinked.
Wow.
Syrus actually shouted louder than Polaris!
Syrus, LP: 4000.
Polaris, LP: 4000.
"First turn is mine!"
Syrus shouted first.
"My turn!"
He drew a card from his hand.
"Spell Card, Pot of Greed!"
The first action, Pot of Greed. This way you'll know I'm from the Fusion Dimension!
"Draw two cards from my Deck."
"Then, Equip Spell Card, Future Fusion!" Syrus's card operation seemed to carry a storm.
Huh?
Hikaru was startled.
"Huh!??" Even the Fusion Dimension classmates and teachers gasped together.
"Syrus has Future Fusion!?" Dennis's eyes widened, shocked at the duel's content.
"Hiss, this kid actually has the equip version of Future Fusion!?" Even Chazz's calm expression went briefly stunned. "Even the Chazz Group couldn't collect this kind of card for me."
At the GX tournament, Future Fusion's performance was plain to see. How strong this thing was, you could see from the performance of the final participants.
In the Fusion Dimension, this was a super card you couldn't buy no matter how you tried!
Even Professor Crowler, relying on his face as "the legendary duelist" to mingle in various card markets, couldn't find a second one to sell.
Even the duelist who'd previously sold him Future Fusion still occasionally found him, cursed him for being unfair, saying the original sale was a loss. But thinking that card was shining and radiating in Hikaru's hand, he endured.
"Zane holds a large number of rare Fusions. His younger brother also having related Fusions isn't strange..." Atticus Rhodes watched, not too surprised.
Forget Future Fusion. Zane even had some special exclusive Fusion cards that even Hikaru didn't have, like Time Fusion. That was a card even Hikaru didn't have.
But in this situation, using the Future Fusion he hadn't used before.
As expected, watching the juniors grow stronger step by step was really heartening.
"Future Fusion's effect. Send Fusion Materials from the Deck to the Graveyard, Fusion Summon 1 Fusion Monster from the Extra Deck and equip this card to it."
"I send two Kiteroids, one Mixeroid, one Dragonroid, and one UFOroid from my Deck to the Graveyard, conduct a Fusion Summon!"
Behind Syrus, burning jade-green flames began rising. A crimson robot, crossing time, came from the future to his side.
"Fusion Summon!"
"Level 12, Barbaroid, the Ultimate Battle Machine!"
Rumble.
Under the astonished stares of the two nobles, the massive robot slowly manifested on the field.
Barbaroid, the Ultimate Battle Machine. Level 12, EARTH Attribute, Machine-Type. ATK 4000.
"ATK, ATK 4000!?"
"This, a 4000 ATK level monster was actually summoned with just one card!?"
The two nobles' teeth trembled. That short-looking figure, under the glow of the fire, appeared so tall.
"Interesting..." Polaris slightly narrowed his eyes. "As expected, not an opponent who'll waste my time."